Politics
Reform’s Kenyon said ‘Russia within rights to invade Ukraine’
As we’ve reported, Reform’s Makerfield by-election candidate has some predictably rancid opinions. At the same time, he’s said some things which may surprise you – specifically that he voted against Brexit and backed freedom of movement.
Getting back to Reform’s comfort zone, we’ve now learned Kenyon supported Vladimir Putin’s illegal invasion of Crimea back when it was held by Ukraine:
Reform’s Makerfield candidate under fire for resurfaced Russia Crimea commentshttps://t.co/8OskgxazIl
— Reform Party UK Exposed
Reform and imperialism
Kenyon made his comments in 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea, which was then governed by Ukraine. Although the international community mostly recognises Crimea as being part of Ukraine, it’s currently held by Russia.
I agree totally, Russia are well within their rights to do what they have done, as we did with the Falklands.
He said this in response to an online forum thread which described the invasion as “democracy in action”. This is more than a little worrying, because Kenyon is seeking to become a politician in a democracy. Should we assume this means Kenyon will support the UK annexing its neighbours?
According to a Reform spokesperson, we should not, because they told the Telegraph:
at no point did [Kenyon]… explicitly support or endorse Russia’s actions in Crimea.
For clarity, we’re going to repeat what he said in its entirety:
I agree totally, Russia are well within their rights to do what they have done, as we did with the Falklands.
Seems pretty explicit to us, if we’re being honest!
Reform also said Kenyon was:
fully opposed to Russia’s illegal and brutal invasion of Ukraine.
Do we need to repeat Kenyon’s own words again?
Reform’s ties to Russia
Reform has a pretty dodgy track record when it comes to Russian sympathies. As Skwawkbox reported for the Canary:
Former Reform UK in Wales leader Nathan Gill has today been sentenced to ten and a half years in prison after admitting taking bribes to make positive statements about Russia.
The judge in the case told Gill upon sentencing:
When you say what someone has paid you to say, you are not speaking with sincerity. If it was your genuine opinion, you would not need to be paid for saying it.
Allowing money to corrupt your moral compass constitutes a grave betrayal of the trust vested in you by the electorate.
Farage initially tried to suggest he barely knew Gill; he eventually admitted they were close. Later yet, it would turn out Farage also knew the bribers:
We know Kremlin agent of influence Nadia Sass considered Nigel Farage her ‘good friend’…because she told us.
She cultivated far right political leaders & her social media was key part of her tradecraft.
New in @thenerve_news today are the details — Carole Cadwalladr (@carolecadwalla) October 18, 2025
4/https://t.co/bDzxdxRVO6 pic.twitter.com/Yzvp7jP5uy
Geopolitics
While it’s true UK politicians use Russia as an excuse for sabre rattling, it’s also undeniable that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was an act of imperialism akin to the West’s actions in the Middle East. Another obvious fact is that Reform politicians don’t respect Vladimir Putin because they see him as a bulwark against Western hegemony; they respect him because he’s a murderous crook and bully.
Kenyon might ‘explicitly’ oppose the invasion of Ukraine now, but we’re not convinced that will remain the case should he form part of a Reform government.
Featured image via Andrew Harnik (Getty Images)
By Willem Moore
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